Daily Yellowstone journal., 1887-06-12
GUM. FRESH AND FRAGRANT.
How u Il 0athsrsd-Its Native Fores
Adulteration.

nov NJ ~ ootuoEo0.hto Nsss'c osuo~
A~dultsrstion. ~
A lump OF clear. genuine spruce gum,
fresh and fragrant from its native forest,
Is not to be despised as a chewing sub
stance, and il everybody could get the
real article, instead Of cheap, adulterated
stuff, the army Of chewers would be
vastly augmented. The natural gum Is
said by physicians to be beneficial TO the
teeth, and it Is certainly q great improve
ment on tobacco. The woodsmen bring
out considerable quantities of gum, some
times packed in pretty miniature barrels,
which they whittle and carve from blocks
of white pine OF cedar during idle hours
by the camp fire, a. presents for their
friends, but there are people who make a
business Of gathering gum, and in GER
tain sections of the spruce country it pays
well.
Most Of the spruce gum handled by the
dealers comes from Canada and northern
Maine, while Vermont and New Hamp-
shire contribute . moderate quantity to the
total yield. The best gum comes from no
particular section, but always from the
biggest spruce trees, and it begins to run
in July or August, when, in these high lati-
tudes, the sun becomes 90 hot as to crack
the bark. On the limbs, in the crotches,
and wen in the trunk Of the spruce, the
molten gum forms during the heat Of
summer In all sorts Of fantastic shapes,
and when cold weather sets in 1t becomes
hard. The first year after its run the
gum Is white and pitchy, then it begins
to turn amber and red, and the second
year it is ct to ''pick" for the market,
although it is better il allowed TO remain
on the trees until the third year. After
the third season the gum remains in the
same state for several years, and then
begins to ''turn DID," as the pickers say,
and the consumer complains that il
s'chews hard" and crumbles up. A little
more age makes it dark colored and bitter,
and then its value is gone.
Up in Canada much Of the gum ID
picked in the autumn, beginning as early
as October, but there, as in Maine, the
best time for the work is during the deer
SHOWS of the winter. when snowshoes are
used, or in the early spring, when a man
can travel along at q lively rate on the
heavy crust, above the underbrush. The
pickers are provided with long poles, on
the end of which is fastened a SHARP
chisel, and underneath that q cup to re.
ceive the gum as it is Clipped off. The
cup holds from a pint to a quart, and
when full it is emptied into a long bag
which the packer carries slung to hi
back like a k~napsack. These gum har-
vesters erect huts in the woods when fal
distant from a settlement or a loggine
camp and stay from two days to a weel
on a trip. When they have secured al
much as they a 'tote" they como out
and then the women and children hav,
the tedious job of scraping each ant
every lump free from bark and moss
The clean, bright article offered for sal,
in the shops looks very much different
from the brown nuggets in the picker
bag, although occasionally a clear, shiny
piece is found on the limb Of a large tree
1t is the cleaning Of the gum tina
makes q first class article expensive. Al
ordinary picker usually earns fair day
wages, although in localities that hav'
not been explored he sometimes strike
it rich" / have known a man to gathel
$50 worth Of gum in one day.
There are two or three firms in Maine
which buy large quantities of gum from
lumbermen and pickers for the purposl
refining it, as they say. But, as a genera
rule, the refining consists of adulteratior
with rosin. They throw the Inn into
big vat, bark, moss and all, and boil it d
about the consistency Of molasses, skim
ming off the impurities as they rise b
the surface. Then, IL the purpose be {,
adulterate, some lard or grease and a 10
of rosin is thrown in, with sometimes
little sugar, The mixture is stirred unit
thick, and then poured out on a slab
where. while it is yet hot, it is rolled on
in a sheet about a quarter of an incl
thick, and afterward cut with a steel di,
into pieces half an inch wide and three
quarters of an Inch long. These piece
are wrapped in colored tissue paper ant
packed in wooden boxes-2OO'p pieces to |;
box. This is the socalled patent" gum
Tons Of it are sold south and west of us
but here on the verge of the primeva
forest it is a drug in the market. -Bango
(Me.) Cor. New York Sun.